China Imported 7.4 Million Barrels of Crude Oil Per Day in April

According to the Financial Times (link below), Chinese crude oil imports surpassed those of the United States for the first time ever in April.

According to Chinese customs data, China reportedly imported 7.4 million barrels of crude oil per day in April, surpassing the 7.2 million barrels per day that the United States imported.

According to reports, China's voracious appetite for oil comes despite the fact that their stockpiles of the commodity are growing. The reason for China's heavy buying as of late is likely due to a number of reasons, including the recent drop in prices and the fact that countries such as Iran may be offering discounts to China in order to "secure more Chinese investment".

Over the past decade or so, Chinese imports of crude oil have soared from roughly 2 million barrels/day to a current level of 7.4 million barrels/day as their economy has grown in leaps and bounds. US demand for crude oil, on the other hand, has dropped from over 10 million barrels/day to a current level of 7.2 million barrels/day thanks to the surge in shale oil production and a long period of economic malaise.

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Global oil prices have been wildly volatile over the past six months or so due to OPEC's refusal to curtail oil production. This strategy of maintaining output levels has been implemented, in large part, to damage the United States' shale oil industry.

Oil prices plummeted at the end of 2014, dropping over 50%. There has been a bit of a rebound as of late, however, as lower oil prices has led to increased fuel demand.